Christmas has come early at the Royal Hospital for Children in Glasgow…..with the delivery of 250 iPads for the young patients.
One of the first to get his hands on the new technology was 10 year old Carson Kelly from Dundee. Carson has been in the hospital a several times this year and has undergone a number of operations, following a serious car crash in January.
Carson’s mum Sheree Birse said: “I think it’s great that the kids will have these by their beds. Some other patients like Carson can be in hospital for long periods of time, so having these, with the movies and games, will really help to keep them occupied.
“Carson’s been enjoying the games this afternoon and it makes the time pass for him while we wait for him to get home. We’re hoping that will be in the next day or two.
“The play team here have also been great, coming round and playing with him – they really do a great job.”
The project to install the new iPads is well under way. Once complete, every in-patient bed in the Royal Hospital for Children will have one and the others will be spread around the hospital.
Mark Riddell, Head of Estates Operations at NHSGGC said: “The iPads have been going down a storm with the kids. As they are being installed, they are coming up to the engineers asking them if they’re going to be next!
“We applied to the Scottish Government for the funding for the project and were lucky to secure the whole £163,000.”
In total, the iPads will have 136 different applications from Disney Plus to educational games, and everything in between.
“What’s also good is that the iPad can be configured to the individual patient. There are all the different age ranges – 0-3, 3-6, 6-9, 9-12, 12-15 and 15+. So after a patient leaves the hospital, it gets cleared and re-set for the next patient, making sure the content is age appropriate.
“Doing this in Christmas week has been great fun and there’s been lots of fun and lots of smiles. We all feel like Santa Claus!”
Health Secretary Humza Yousaf said: “I am delighted we were able to provide additional funding to purchase iPads for the children’s hospital, to give some recreational and educational benefits, particularly to those who attend hospital regularly or for extended periods.
“To have them installed before Christmas is hopefully a welcome gift for those who need to have treatment over the festive period, to make the holidays a little more pleasant.”